Seeking legal advice

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Member since 23 September 2019

WoShiDavid95Member06 October 2019 03:09:08

So I'll start with some background information on myself, I was an international student with a Tuition Grant bond from NTU so I'm obliged to work in Singapore for at least 3 years. I am currently waiting for my EP to be approved, but before this I experienced something less than ideal and I was wondering if I could do something about it.

Around early June I found a job at a tuition center which agreed to hire me full-time and told me they were going to apply for my Employment Pass and I even signed a full-time contract with them; but in the next few weeks they were really unresponsive when I asked them about my Employment Pass application... my fears came true when in mid-July, one of the teachers had to break the bad news to me that they couldn't hire me full-time anymore since they didn't have the number of students they expected.

I was shocked to say the least; I still have my employment contract which stipulates that 'Either party may terminate the employment relationship at any time during the initial 3-month probation period with a justifiable reason and an advance notice of one (1) month', so right now I'm wondering if I could report this to MOM and get 1 month's worth of salary?

The problem is I never got my Employment Pass or even had it applied for me, so I'm not sure if I can do anything about it since if I didn't have an EP, it means I can't legally be working so do the terms in the contract still apply?

Even if nothing can be done about it legally, it is still unethical and if the company had any conscience, they'd compensate me for pulling such a horrible stunt on me 🙄 But I digress... anyway, thank you in advance to those able to advice me.

surya2k VIP Member

Member since 22 June 2014

surya2kVIP Member06 October 2019 04:47:50

2890

Here, employer has an upper hand in this situation as they will say due to bad market and student enrolment, they have postponed the recruitment process and contacted each affected parties.

So, they apologise for any inconvenience caused due to this. After this, they simply can wash their hand. You won’t have much luck to do against it. But, yes you can lodge a complaint with all the supporting and ask for one month salary compensation. Good luck

Danial83 Active member

Member since 02 October 2019

Danial83Active member06 October 2019 05:45:43

Your situation is a bit similar to mine. The best way is to contact a lawyer and he can advise you correctly. The fact that they signed a contract with you and not they are backing up for any reason could help you. They can not simply hire you and then change their mind. You need to contact a lawyer for this.

beppi Germany - Singapore Expert

Member since 08 August 2010

Germany & Singapore Expert

beppiGermany - Singapore Expert06 October 2019 19:39:34

15335

All Singapore employment contracts are under the caveat (whether explicitly written or not) that they are only valid if a work pass is issued for it by MoM.
If not (for whatever reason), the contract is simply void and no rights can be derived from it.
Now, in principle you could claim damages from the school for not applying for your EP out of malicious intent - but I have never heard of anyone winning this in court. After all, how do you prove (beyond legal doubt) that they did it to harm you and that their reasoning of an unforeseen fall in student numbers is not true?
Thus, if I were you, reporting the incidence to MoMis the maximum I would do - even though that, too, is unlikely to have any effect.
Count yourself lucky that you got another job and did not have to join such a bad employer!

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